Paper Snow
by Chibi Schoen
Summary: It's near Christmas.... somehow Scwarz gets Xmas off this year! BradxSchu...Fluffish....OOC-ish....I think.Review if you have the time.


The wind blew hard as Brad pulled his jacket closed and buttoned it. Snow fell everywhere, the night turned slowly white with each falling flake.  
  
"What now...." He thought as he turned the last corner before the apartment building. Deep in thought, he walked inside and took the elevator up to the 12th floor. He expected to be greeted with a sarcastic remark from a certain redhead, but all he found upon entering the apartment was Nagi, sitting on the couch reading a magazine. He nodded to Brad as he walked in the door.  
  
"Wheres Schuldich?" Brad asked casually.  
  
Nagi didn't look up. "On the roof." He mumbled lazily from his spot on the couch.  
  
"Why...?"  
  
"Who knows...? We're talking about Schuldich."  
  
Brad straightened his jacket and walked back out the door. He was curious as to what the German could be doing on the roof. He took the elevator to the top floor and took the stairs outside. He walked out the door and saw the redhead leaning on the rails along the edge of the roof. He slowly approached Schuldich from behind.  
  
Schuldich took a long drag on his cigarette, looking out at the crowded horizon. The buildings swallowed the sky, and the snow blended the two in a soft shade of white. Brad's voice startled him and he turned to the american standing behind him, trying his best but failing to smile.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I said, What's up...?"  
  
"Oh. I was just thinking."  
  
"About what?"  
  
"..........mutter......."  
  
"Oh? And here I thought you didn't have one." Brad replied sarcastically, trying to brighten the german up as best he could.  
  
"I used to."  
  
"You've never bothered to bring her up before, any reason why you would now?"  
  
Schuldich turned to look away from both the horizon and Brad as he dropped his cigarette into the snow.  
  
"Every time it snowed she would say something...."  
  
"And that was...?"  
  
Schuldich hesitated and looked back out to the white horizon.  
  
"Warum ist nur in meinen TraŸmen leib, die wir zwei weg zusammen laufen lassen kšmmen?"  
  
Brad silently walked over and leaned on the rails beside the German.  
  
"She meant it for my father I think.....he left on a snowy night..."  
  
"...Left?"  
  
".......I don't know what happened to him exactly...whether he died or just left my mother...."  
  
"I'm sorry..." Brad's voice trailed off. He wanted nothing more than to hold Schuldich at that moment....but he couldn't. It felt like they were a million miles apart...Schuldich was untouchable now. Schuldich stood up. Brad just watched him as he walked towards the door into the building. Covered with snow, he walked in and went slowly down the stairs. Brad just watched him leave until the door completely closed behind him. Brad turned back around and looked out at the horizon.  
  
"My mother loved the snow...............................father............"  
  
****  
  
Nagi looked up from his magazine to see the redhead walk in, still covered in snow.  
  
"I see the weather has gotten worse."  
  
Schuldich just noddded and took his jacket off and dropped it on the floor. He kicked his shoes off as he walked through the room, past the couch and straight to his room. Nagi didn't take the time to wonder what was going on, he just went back to his magazine.  
  
****  
  
Brad opened the door to the apartment and looked around. Nagi was gone and the room was empty, the only thing in the room was ther German's jacket and shoes. He sighed and hung his jacket up, along with the one on the floor. He put their shoes next to the door and went to the bathroom to get a towel and dry his hair. The bathroom was again covered with blood, and Farfarello lay passed out in the tub. Brad just shook his head and searched for a clean towel. The second he pulled a clean towel from the cabinet he turned around to find Schuldich standing in the doorway. He wasn't smirking like usual, his face was expressionless for once.  
  
".....Wha..."  
  
"A little late isn't it Brad?"  
  
"What time is it?"  
  
"It's 12:30. "  
  
"I guess I lost track of time."  
  
"Why did you stay out there so long?"  
  
"I don't know. Perhaps I blacked out."  
  
"I see."  
  
"Shouldn't you be in bed?"  
  
"I'm not Nagi."  
  
"So? All growing boys need their rest." Brad just tried to smirk as best he could to lighten things up and Schuldich just snickered a bit and went to his room.  
  
"Don't forget what day it is tomorrow, Brad. Make sure you buy something big and expensive for me!" Schuldich turned around and gave Brad a childish grin before heading into his room.  
  
"That's the day AFTER tomorrow."  
  
"Oh. Right." The door shut behind the german and Brad fell back against the wall. That grin was sort of unnerving. He just glanced at the irishman in the tub, still passed out cold, he probably would be out for another few hours. Brad looked around at all the blood on the walls and the floor.  
  
".....he'll lick it up in the morning....."  
  
Brad just stood back up and walked slowly to his room, down the dark hallway past Nagi's room...then Farfarello's....then Schuldich's.......he stopped and stared at the door of the german's bedroom. He wished he could see through the door and see what was really bothering Schuldich....  
  
It can't just be his mother on his mind. He thought. He continued into his own room and went to bed.  
  
****  
  
The next morning came quickly, and Brad woke up to the sound of his door being slammed open. He sat up straight and looked over to the door, sweat rolling down his face, startled by the loud noise.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"  
  
He glared at the german standing in the doorway.  
  
"Brad! We got off for Christmas and New Year!"  
  
Brad rubbed his eyes and layed back down.  
  
"How did this happen..."  
  
"Takatori is leaving Japan for a few weeks and apparently he doesn't need us."  
  
"Interesting..."  
  
Brad began to nod off and rolled over facing away from the door. It wasn't long after that he found the german sitting on his bed, shaking him.  
  
"Brad come on don't go back to sleep...I'll be bored....!"  
  
"Then go back to bed."  
  
"Why don't I sleep with youu?"  
  
Schuldich replied playfully with his mouth right next to Brad's ear. Definetly not good in the morning. Brad wanted to say yes...but the german was joking and Brad didn't feel much like ruining his morning and his whole life in Schwarz by saying one little three letter word.  
  
"Let me sleep, Schuldich."  
  
"Aww....but Bradd..."  
  
"You're getting annoying." And with that, Brad waved his arm at Schuldich, pushing him away. The german got up and left the room. "That....didn't seem right." Brad buried his head under a pillow, sinking into the soft mattress, trying to get the redhead off of his mind. This is hell.....this Christmas is going to be hell....with my luck he'll come back with a whore.... So much for trying to go back to sleep....Brad just layed there for hours.  
  
****  
  
"Isn't Brad going to get up and spend Christmas eve with us?" Nagi asked Schuldich as he came out of Brad's room.  
  
"....He needs more sleep.....hes cranky." Schuldich replied in a tone that sounded more disappointed than anything else.  
  
"Go check on Farfarello. I told him to clean the blood in the bathroom but I think he pulled another knife out...."   
  
****  
  
Brad sat on the edge of his bed with his elbows leaning on his knees. This wasn't like him to be depressed about anything. By now he should have been up hours ago, typing away at the computer in the corner, but for some reason he didn't want to wake up this morning. He looked up and opened the drawer of the table next to his bed. He sat up and moved over closer to the drawer, still sitting on his bed. After about a minute of digging, he pulled out a small folded piece of paper. It was ripped in places and pieces of it were missing; Small bits of dust and paper fell out as he unfolded it, the small folded paper became a snowflake little by little. The rips in the edges made it look even more like a snowflake. One piece of paper that held so many memories now falling apart in his hands....  
  
Brad remembered way back to when he first made a paper snowflake in first grade, and brought it home to his mother. He could distinctly remember her smile when he showed it to her, and the smile when she took him to the snow covered beach the day after that....the day that held one of his most treasured memories of his mother.....but even that was now missing something. He was missing the love he used to feel...a mutual feeling between he and his mother......with her gone....it was empty. It was merely paper now...nothing more.  
  
Brad looked up and quickly shoved the paper under his clock and put his glasses on. He stood up and waited for the door to open. A few minutes later Nagi came walking in.  
  
"Glad to see you're up, Crawford."  
  
Brad just nodded to the young boy in the doorway and walked to his closet.  
  
"So...what business do you have in here exactly?" Brad inquired as he opened the door of his closet, looking over his shoulder.  
  
"Making sure you weren't dead for one- and for two, I was going to ask you about Schuldich."  
  
Brad turned back to his closet and pulled out a dress shirt and a pair of jeans. "What about him?"  
  
"Has he been acting strange?"  
  
Brad didn't reply at first, but continued to shut the door of his closet and lay his clothing out on the bed. ".....I haven't noticed."  
  
"Very well." Nagi turned and left the room, closing the door gently behind him.  
  
So Brad wasn't the only one who had noticed it.  
  
****  
  
Schuldich walked in with a cup of coffee and a smile, both for Brad. Brad finished buttoning his shirt and looked up with a half happy half questioning face.  
  
"C'mon Brad, come and spend some time with us already. I need someone to play cards with....Nagi can cheat."  
  
Brad snickered and took the coffee cup. "You know I'll win." He said after taking a sip.  
  
"You're on."  
  
"Blackjack or poker?"  
  
The two of them walked out the door and into the living room, where they sat at the table, the redhead on the couch and Brad on the floor. Schuldich smirked and shuffled the cards.  
  
"....Hey Brad...."  
  
Brad looked up at him from his seat on the floor. "?"  
  
"Ever played Bus Driver....?"  
  
Brad put his elbow on the table. "I don't think so."  
  
"OK. I'll teach you. You can be the bus driver." And with that Schuldich proceeded to throw the deck and cards flew all around the room. "Pick up your passengers."  
  
Brad just looked at him stunned. "You bastard." Brad began to pick up cards in stacks and throw them at the german, who in turn, threw them back. It turned into an all out card war, resulting in two tired people and a room covered in cards. "It doesn't look like a lot of cards when they're in a stack....but they look like a lot more when they're everywhere...."  
  
"Yeah.." Schuldich replied laughing and pulling the ace of spades out of his hair. "...Hey Brad."  
  
"What...?"  
  
Schuldich pointed to Brad's pocket. Looking down, he pulled the king of hearts card out.  
  
"Interesting. Probably just a coincidence."  
  
A few minutes later Nagi walked in the door. He looked around the room and then at the two tired people sprawled out on the couch and the floor. "What the hell happened?? I thought you were playing poker!"  
  
"Sorry mom." Schuldich smirked. "Should I go to my room?"  
  
Nagi just glared at the german and stacked the cards in his hand with his telekenesis. He placed the deck of cards down on the table between the two men and walked into his room. He stopped at the door. "By the way.....Farfarello went out. I don't know how many will be killed but....he said he was going to celebrate."  
  
"Oh God...." Brad remarked with a sigh.  
  
Nagi walked into his room. After the door shut, the room was silent for a few minutes.  
  
"Now what...?" Schuldich broke the silence.  
  
Brad mumbled and rolled onto his side. "It's 4:00."  
  
"There's nothing good on TV....."  
  
Brad sat up and took a sip of his coffee, which was now cold. Making a sour face he swallowed the cold coffee and shook his head. Schuldich chuckled watching him. He rolled to his side on the couch to look at Brad.  
  
"So what did you get me for Christmas?"  
  
"What would one go about getting a german telepath for Christmas?"  
  
".....heh. What I want is priceless.....but I guess I could settle for some flowers...."  
  
"Why ruin their Christmas.....when we could ruin their lives....or their mental stability."  
  
"All in good fun." Schuldich smirked.  
  
***The hours passed and Nagi left to go somewhere else for Christmas eve, leaving Schuldich and Brad alone.***  
  
Schuldich grabbed his cigarettes and his jacket and headed outside to the roof. A few minutes later, Brad got out of the shower and found an empty apartment. He probably went out to a whore house.. Brad dried off and decided to go out to the roof and think for a while. He slipped his jacket on and put two cans of beer in his pocket so he wouldn't have to come back for more later. Before he left, he picked up the small paper he had put under his clock and put it in his pocket. He didn't bother to lock the door on his way out.  
  
He stepped out into the cold, surprised to see the redhead standing on the roof again, leaning on the rails. He approached Schuldich and leaned backwards on the rails beside him. Looking up at the grey sky, he didn't say anything to Schuldich.  
  
"It's amazing isn't it?"  
  
Brad looked over at Schuldich, who was still looking out at the horizon and holding a cigarette in his teeth. "What is?"  
  
"How snow can still fall wherever you go.....even though it looks like the city swallowed the sky....it still snows....in the lonliest places...."  
  
Brad nodded, not quite following Schuldich, but listening intently. He pulled a beer out of his pocket and held it out to the redhead. He turned to look at Brad, smiled lightly and took the beer. Brad pulled the other out of his pocket for himself. They cracked the beercans open and both took a sip. They stayed silent for a while...until once again Schuldich broke the silence.  
  
"Brad..."  
  
"Hn?"  
  
"You know what that saying meant....right....?"  
  
"What saying?"  
  
"The one my mother used to say..."  
  
"Yes. 'Why is it that only in my dreams can we run away together' ."  
  
".........It makes me think of someone besides my mother."  
  
Brad's heart began to pound. He was afraid and anxious to know what Schuldich would say next. He turned to look over at the redhead, who was just staring out to the horizon with a tiny smile lingering on his lips.  
  
"It....makes me think.....think of...." He turned towards Brad and let his cigarette fall gently into the snow. "...of you, Brad."  
  
Their eyes met at that instant and silence fell over everything for a minute. Silence....utter silence....what just happened? Brad recalled what was just said. How could that happen?? Brad felt a tear run down his cheek and it woke him up, the sound came back to the world and he fell into Schuldich. He completely lost everything that once defined him, his grace, hard edges and discipline all fell into Schuldich and disappeared, now all he was...was a lost child who had just found his home. The german just wrapped his arms around Brad and brushed the snow off of his hair.  
  
".....Brad.....Merry Christmas......."  
  
Brad looked up and Schuldich wiped a tear away from his face with his thumb. It looked like something from a romantic movie, it was playing out perfectly for both of them. Brad stepped back and pulled the small piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolded it and held it up.  
  
"When I was very little...I made these every winter...and my mother.....she would take me to a beach nearby our house...she would toss one into the sea and make a wish...and so would I.....we were supposed to do it the day she died.......and I haven't made one since....I want you to have this wish."  
  
It was childish....it was unbelievable....but then again so was Schuldich's confession. Schuldich looked at him with a confused face at first but then a warm smile crossed his face.  
  
"Thank you....but....we're not at a beach....and I can't take that from you.....it's a memory of your mother."  
  
Schuldich wouldn't want to be the one to "throw it away". Even if he didn't quite understand... He looked into Brad's eyes. They were clearly full of thought and he could tell this meant a lot to Brad. He smiled and put his hands on Brad's.  
  
"Well....why don't we both do it?"  
  
Brad smiled and the two both turned to the edge of the building. Brad was in front of Schuldich, who was standing behind him with his hands over Brad's. They closed their eyes for a minute before letting the paper fly into the wind. Brad fell back onto the german as their hands slid together and Schuldich held Brad close to him. They watched the paper float away into the horizon and get swallowed by the sky. Brad smiled and closed his eyes, leaning it against the warmth of Schuldich's chest.  
  
"Lets go inside, Brad." Schuldich whispered in his ear and kissed him softly on the cheek.  
  
******* So the two of them were no longer alone....their wishes were granted that day....Christmas wasn't so bad after all. ******** *********** ************** I know Brad is really taller than Schuldich.....but...it was kute.....or at least I thought it was.... I've been trying to do a great story to this title for the past few months and sadly this is all I could come up with....I thought the title could really make for a kute story (obviously inspired by that Yuuki Hiro song Paper Snow) .....I honestly don't think this is the best I could do....so I'll keep at it cuz I really want the story with this damn title to be the best.....I had the kutest ideas in mind but they didn't play out as best they could in this I think....::sigh:: I can never write the best ideas without them turning to crap! 


End file.
